My Christmas Card 2022 + A Christmas Mall Outing!

One of my current favorite quotes is “be the woman that your dog aspires you to be!” If you follow me on Instagram (follow me @_thepinkchickadee!) or know me in real life, then you probably know that I have a 3 year-old Shepherd-Chihuahua mix named Rosie who is my pride and joy in this great thing called life. Papa and I rescued her from a local shelter as she came from Puerto Rico as a result of the hurricanes there. Well, as a proud Dog Mom I *had* to give Rosie the Christmas experience that I think every dog deserves – a visit to meet the one and only Santa Claus!

Luckily, the mall closest to my office – Tysons Corner Center located in Tysons, Virginia – has a few select designated Pet Nights to meet Santa Claus. I ended up looking for opportunities to meet Santa Claus and happened to find an advertisement for Tysons Corner Center’s Pet Nights with Santa on Facebook and as per usual Katie fashion ended up reserving me, Papa, and Rosie a slot for our Christmas 2022 photos! Read more about Tysons Corner Center’s Santa schedule and to reserve your spot here: https://www.tysonscornercenter.com/SantaPhotos

Since it was Pet Night at Tysons Corner Center, Rosie along with ALL the other pets were allowed to enter the mall without any judgement or requests to leave by anyone who works there. Rosie got to walk through the GORGEOUS-ly decked out mall allll the way to Santa’s North Pole where we waited to meet the Big Guy! We got there pretty early and getting the photos done were pretty quick, too. I had a BLAST getting to meet other families with their dogs and kids, alike. Rosie met some friends, too, and especially made a great new friend in Santa (for those of you that have met my Rosie Posie in real life know that she can be hit or miss with meeting new people and she doesn’t like to be picked up either). Well, Santa picked her up and she stroke a “posie” for the camera, too!! Needless to say I was and still am VERY proud of her.

And, the resulting photo for Christmas Card 2022 is, …..

*drum roll please*

Here you go!!!!

Along with taking Christmas photos, I LOVED getting to stroll with my dog aka a dream come true through the mall. Tysons Corner Center has some super fun murals, displays, and *of course* Christmas decorations at every turn. We parked right by the Bloomingdale’s entrance and I was in awe at the beautiful Christmas decor and displays that honored 150 years of the notable designer department store. Along with Bloomingdale’s, Papa and Rosie and I walked through Nordstrom which has my favorite shoe selection in the entire mall – yep, and has been for years aka since high school!! – and got to admire the decorations there, too. I LOVED that Nordstrom played off of the colorful fashion this holiday season, specifically with the color PINK. If you are in the Washington, DC area, a visit to Tysons Corner Center – in walking distance and easy access from the Tysons Metro Station on the Silver Line if coming from the city – should definitely be on your list to get some Christmas shopping done and to take in some holiday cheer.

XOXO – Katie <3

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How I Budget for Christmas

Whether we like it or not, Christmas time is upon us! That being said, many of us are placing an emphasis on budgeting for Christmas. Personally, I have always spent a little extra if not more than a little at the holiday’s. What can I say?! Christmas is the most wonderful time of the year!

  1. Make a list – whether it be activities, dinners, hostess gifts, putting together a gathering, cards, apparel, decorations, gifts, or all of the above. Anything and everything that you could even think about spending money on during the holiday’s is worth while to put on that list.
  2. Check that list twice – Like I always say, you have to check ALL the details! 9 times out of 10, we always miss something when we look over things yet again. I know I do! The same idea goes for making a list as to what you may purchase during the holiday’s.
  3. Set a budget overall – Overall, it’s important to set a limit for how much you can both afford and are willing to spend on Christmas. Setting that budget overall will then help you to categorize everything else from there, too. At the end of the day, having a budget overall will give you peace of mind as to how much you are planning to spend this holiday season and allow you to budget for other things whatever they may be accordingly.
  4. Set a budget for each person and prioritize – When it comes to gifts and activities and everything else in between, it’s important to prioritize who and where your Christmas money will go. That way, you can set limits and budget accordingly. While it is hard to sometimes set limits as to who gets allotted how much and what they may get, it’s important to remember that those closest to you are most likely the priority and the one’s you will probably be spending the holidays with. Though gifts are a part of the Christmas holiday, they are not everything and friends and family value quality time (and probably food – say a home cooked meal that they don’t have to cook) over anything else.

Christmas is an amazing time of the year. It is a time of giving to others and ourselves and celebration. Most importantly, Christmas is a time of love and quality time to celebrate the birth of Christ. While not all of my readers are Christians, it is key to mention that Christmas is a true testament to love and giving all around – no MATTER what you believe. Whether you have a lot to spend at Christmas or not, simply spending time with those you love is what’s most important.

XOXO – Katie <3

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The Magical Delaware Christmas Town

Love me a Christmas town! Last weekend, my family and I visited the tiny and charming town of Lewes, Delaware. This sweet little town has been decked out for Christmas for a while. Along with solely small businesses in town, Lewes also has its own historical significance too, as there are plaques commemorating its events over the centuries. Lewes is definitely a gem along the Delaware coastline!

Visiting Lewes was such a great experience. The town is so walkable and everywhere you turn there is something new and wonderful. It makes for an excellent day trip if you are in the Bethany Beach/Rehoboth Beach/Dewey Beach area. You will not regret it!!!

XOXO – Katie <3

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Christmas 2020 Decor Reveal

Have yourself a Merry Lilly Christmas! If you know me, then you know that I LOVE Christmas. So, today on the blog, I am revealing ALL of the Christmas decor for my first-ever Katie’s Confetti Christmas *cue the confetti*!!! All of my Christmas decorations are brought to you by Target, Hobby Lobby, Michael’s, Home Goods, Amazon, DIY, or leftover from my house or Papa’s from years past. With everything going on due to the coronavirus, I am very excited to have decorated a bit early for Christmas this year to spread some cheer. Enjoy!

A special thanks to my good friend Kaylee for helping me deck the halls with some sweet confetti Christmas cheer <3

XOXO – Katie <3

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